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March 26
Events *1026 - Pope John XIX crowns Conrad II as Holy Roman Emperor. *1199 - Richard the Lionheart is fatally wounded by a crossbow bolt during a siege in France, he dies eleven days later. The marksman, a french noble named Pierre Basile, is executed. *1484 - William Caxton printed his translation of Aesop's Fables. *1552 - Guru Amar Das becomes the Third Sikh Guru. *1636 - Utrecht University is founded in The Netherlands. *1808 - Charles IV of Spain abdicates in favor of his son, Ferdinand VII. *1812 - An earthquake destroys Caracas, Venezuela. *1839 - The first Henley Royal Regatta is held. *1881 - Thessaly is freed and becomes part of Greece again. *1913 - Balkan War: Bulgarian forces take Adrianople. *1917 - World War I: First Battle of Gaza - British troops are haltedafter 17,000 Turks block their advance. *1934 - Driving test introduced in the United Kingdom. *1942 - World War II: In Poland, Auschwitz receives its first female prisoners. *1945 - World War II: In Iwo Jima, US forces declare Iwo Jima as "secure." *1953 - Jonas Salk announces his polio vaccine. *1958 - The United States Army launches Explorer III. * 1958 - The African Regroupment Party (PRA) is launched at a meeting in Paris. *1965 - A truck loses control down Moosic Street, Scranton, Pennsylvania, killing the driver. This accident later inspired the 1974 Harry Chapin song, "30,000 Pounds of Bananas." *1967 - Ten thousand people gather for the Central Park Be-In. *1971 - East Pakistan declares its independence from Pakistan to form People's Republic of Bangladesh and Bangladesh Liberation War begins. *1975 - The Biological Weapons Convention enters into force. *1976 - Queen Elizabeth II sent out the first royal email, from the Royal Signals and Radar Establishment. *1977 - Focus on the Family is founded by Dr. James Dobson *1979 - Anwar al-Sadat, Menachem Begin and Jimmy Carter sign the Israel-Egypt Peace Treaty in Washington. *1982 - A groundbreaking ceremony for the Vietnam Veterans Memorial is held in Washington. *1995 - The Schengen Treaty goes into effect. *1996 - The International Monetary Fund approves a $10.2 billion loan for Russia. *1997 - Thirty-nine bodies found in the Heaven's Gate cult suicides. *1998 - Oued Bouaicha massacre in Algeria; 52 people killed with axes and knives, 32 of them babies under the age of 2. *1999 - The "Melissa worm" infects Microsoft word processing and e-mail systems around the world. * 1999 - A jury in Michigan finds Dr. Jack Kevorkian guilty of second-degree murder for administering a lethal injection to a terminally ill man. *2000 - Vladimir Putin is elected 2nd President of Russia. *2005 - The Taiwanese government calls on 1 million Taiwanese to demonstrate in Taipei, in opposition to the Anti-Secession Law of the People's Republic of China. Around 200,000 to 300,000 attend the walk. *2006 - In Scotland, the prohibition of smoking in all substantially enclosed public places comes into force. *2006 - The military junta ruling Myanmar officially named Naypyidaw, a new city in Mandalay Division, as the new capital. Yangon had formerly been the nation's capital. Births *1516 - Conrad Gessner, Swiss naturalist (d. 1565) *1554 - Charles of Lorraine, French military leader (d. 1611) *1698 - Václav Prokop Diviš, Czech theologian and natural scientist (d. 1765) *1749 - William Blount, Founding Father (d. 1800) *1753 - Benjamin Thompson, American physicist and inventor (d. 1814) *1773 - Nathaniel Bowditch, American mathematician and navigation expert (d. 1838) *1794 - Julius Schnorr von Carolsfeld, German painter (d. 1872) *1859 - Alfred Edward Housman, English poet (d. 1936) * 1859 - Adolf Hurwitz, German mathematician (d. 1919) *1868 - King Fuad I of Egypt (d. 1936) *1874 - Robert Frost, American poet (d. 1963) *1875 - Max Abraham, German physicist (d. 1922) * 1875 - Syngman Rhee, President of South Korea (d. 1965) *1876 - Prince William of Wied, sovereign Prince of Albania (d. 1945) *1879 - Othmar Ammann, Swiss-born bridge engineer (d. 1965) *1882 - Hermann Obrecht, member of the Swiss Federal Council (d. 1940) *1884 - Wilhelm Backhaus, German pianist (d. 1969) *1886 - Hugh Mulzac, First African-America captain of the Merchant Marine (d. 1971) * 1894 - Viorica Ursuleac, Romanian soprano (d. 1985) *1896 - Rudolf Dassler, Founder of PUMA AG (d. 1974) *1888 - Elsa Brändström, Swedish nurse (d. 1948) *1893 - Palmiro Togliatti, Italian communist leader (d. 1964) *1904 - Joseph Campbell, American author (d. 1987) * 1904 - Emilio Fernández, Mexican actor, screenwriter and film director (d. 1986) * 1904 - Xenophon Zolotas, Greek economist, Prime Minister of Greece (d. 2004) *1905 - Viktor Frankl, Austrian neurologist and psychiatrist (d. 1997) *1906 - Rafael Mendez, Mexican trumpetist (d. 1981) *1908 - Franz Stangl, commandant of Nazi concentration camps (d. 1971) *1911 - Bernard Katz, German-born biophysicist, Nobel laureate (d. 2003) * 1911 - Tennessee Williams, American dramatist (d. 1983) * 1911 - T. Hee, American animator (d. 1988) *1913 - Paul Erdős, Hungarian mathematician (d. 1996) *1914 - Toru Kumon, Japanese educator (d. 1995) * 1914 - William Westmoreland, U.S. general (d. 2005) *1916 - Christian B. Anfinsen, American chemist, Nobel laureate (d. 1995) * 1916 - Bill Edrich, English cricketer (d. 1986) * 1916 - Sterling Hayden, American actor (d. 1986) *1917 - Rufus Thomas, American musician (d. 2001) *1919 - Strother Martin, American actor (d. 1980) *1922 - Oscar Sala, Italian-born physicist *1923 - Gert Bastian, German politician (d. 1992) * 1923 - Bob Elliott, American comedian *1925 - Pierre Boulez, French composer and conductor * 1925 - James Moody, American jazz musician, composer, and actor *1930 - Gregory Corso, American poet (d. 2001) * 1930 - Sandra Day O'Connor, U.S. Supreme Court Justice *1931 - Leonard Nimoy, American actor and director *1934 - Alan Arkin, American actor *1935 - Mahmoud Abbas, President of the Palestine National Authority *1937 - Wayne Embry, American basketball player *1938 - Anthony James Leggett, American physicist, Nobel laureate *1940 - James Caan, American actor * 1940 - Nancy Pelosi, American politician *1941 - Richard Dawkins, British evolutionary biologist * 1941 - Yvon Marcoux, Quebec politician *1942 - Erica Jong, American author *1943 - Bob Woodward, American journalist *1944 - Diana Ross, American singer (Supremes) *1945 - Mikhail Voronin, Soviet gymnast (d. 2004) *1946 - Johnny Crawford, American actor * 1946 - Alain Madelin, French politician *1947 - Dar Robinson, American stuntman (d. 1986) *1948 - Richard Tandy, British keyboardist (Electric Light Orchestra) * 1948 - Steven Tyler, American singer (Aerosmith) *1949 - Vicki Lawrence, American actress and singer * 1949 - Patrick Süskind, German writer *1950 - Teddy Pendergrass, American singer * 1950 - Martin Short, Canadian comedian * 1950 - Ernest Thomas, American actor *1951 - Carl Wieman, American physicist, Nobel laureate *1952 - Didier Pironi, French Formula One driver (d. 1987) *1953 - Elaine Chao, U.S. Secretary of Labor * 1953 - Lincoln Chafee, American Senator from Rhode Island * 1953 - Youssouf Togoïmi, Chadian rebel (d. 2002) *1954 - Kazuhiko Inoue, Japanese seiyu (voice actor) * 1954 - Curtis Sliwa, American founder of the Guardian Angels *1955 - Danny Arndt, Canadian ice hockey player *1956 - Charly McClain, American singer *1957 - Leeza Gibbons, American television host * 1957 - Paul Morley, English music journalist and musician *1958 - Chris Codiroli, American baseballer * 1958 - Elio de Angelis, Italian racing driver (d. 1986) *1959 - Chris Hansen, American reporter and correspondent *1960 - Catherine Keener, American actress * 1960 - Marcus Allen, American football player * 1960 - Jennifer Grey, American actress *1961 - William Hague, British politician *1962 - John Stockton, American basketball player * 1962 - Paul de Leeuw, Dutch television host *1963 - Natsuhiko Kyogoku, Japanese writer * 1963 - Amparo Larrañaga, Spanish actress * 1963 - Roch Voisine, Canadian singer and songwriter *1964 - Martin Donnelly, Irish racecar driver * 1964 - Marc Pichette, Canadian television communication planner * 1964 - Ulf Samuelsson, Swedish ice hockey player *1966 - Nick Wirth, British engineer * 1966 - Michael Imperioli, actor on The Sopranos *1968 - Kenny Chesney, American singer * 1968 - James Iha, American musician (The Smashing Pumpkins and A Perfect Circle) * 1968 - Laurent Brochard, French cyclist *1971 - Behzad Ghorbani, Iranian zoologist and sociobiologist *1972 - Jon Reep, American comedian and actor *1973 - Heather Goldenhersh, American actress * 1973 - Lawrence E. Page, American search engine pioneer * 1973 - T.R. Knight, American actor *1974 - Mike Peca, Canadian ice hockey player *1976 - Amy Smart, American actress * 1976 - Nurgül Yeşilçay, Turkish actress * 1976 - Ufuk Talay, Australian soccer player *1977 - Kevin Davies, English footballer * 1977 - Sylvain Grenier, Canadian professional wrestler *1978 - Anastasia Kostaki, Greek basketball player *1979 - Hiromi Uehara, Japanese jazz pianist * 1979 - Pierre Wome, Cameroonian footballer *1981 - Baruch Dego, Israeli football player * 1981 - Josh Wilson, American baseball player *1982 - Mikel Arteta, Spanish footballer *1983 - Michael Brendli, American professional wrestler *1984 - Gregory Strydom, Zimbabwean cricketer * 1984 - Stéphanie Lapointe, Canadian artist and singer, 2004 Star Académie winner * 1984 - Sara Jean Underwood, American model *1985 - Keira Knightley, English actress * 1985 - Prosper Utseya, Zimbabwean cricket captain * 1985 - Jonathan Groff, American stage actor *1987 - Yui, Japanese musician *1991 - Brittney Wilson, Canadian actress Deaths * 304 - Saint Emmanuel, Christian martyr killed under Diocletian * 922 - Al-Hallaj, Persian Sufi teacher and writer *1130 - King Sigurd I of Norway (b. ca. 1090) *1212 - King Sancho I of Portugal (b. 1154) *1517 - Heinrich Isaac, Flemish composer *1535 - Georg Tannstetter, Austrian scientist (b. 1482) *1546 - Thomas Elyot, English diplomat *1566 - Antonio de Cabezón, Spanish composer (b. 1510) *1649 - John Winthrop, second governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony *1679 - Johannes Schefferus, Alsatian-born humanist (b. 1621) *1697 - Godfrey McCulloch, Scottish politician and murderer (executed) (b. 1640) *1726 - Sir John Vanbrugh, English dramatist (b. 1664) *1772 - Charles Pinot Duclos, French writer (b. 1704) *1776 - Samuel Ward, American politician (b. 1725) *1780 - Charles I (b. 1713) *1793 - John Mudge, English physician (b. 1721) *1797 - James Hutton, Scottish geologist (b. 1726) *1814 - Joseph-Ignace Guillotin, namesake of the guillotine (b. 1738) *1827 - Ludwig van Beethoven, German composer (b. 1770) *1858 - John Addison Thomas, American soldier (b. 1811) *1881 - Roman Sanguszko, Polish aristocrat (b. 1800) *1892 - Walt Whitman, American poet (b. 1819) *1902 - Cecil Rhodes, English explorer (b. 1853) *1905 - Maurice Barrymore, actor; patriarch of the Barrymore family (b. 1849) *1910 - Auguste Charlois, French astronomer (b. 1864) * 1910 - An Jung-geun, Japanese assassin of Ito Hirobumi (executed) (b. 1879) *1920 - William Chester Minor, American surgeon and contributor to the Oxford English Dictionary (b. 1834) *1923 - Sarah Bernhardt, French actress (b. 1844) *1926 - Konstantin Fehrenbach, Chancellor of Germany (b. 1852) *1929 - Katharine Lee Bates, American poet (b. 1859) *1933 - Eddie Lang, American musician (b. 1902) *1940 - Spiridon Louis, Greek runner, winner of the first modern Olympics marathon (b. 1873) *1942 - Jimmy Burke, American baseball player (b. 1874) *1945 - David Lloyd George, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (b. 1863) *1957 - Édouard Herriot, French politician (b. 1872) *1958 - Phil Mead, English cricketer (b. 1887) *1959 - Raymond Chandler, American-born novelist (b. 1888) *1969 - John Kennedy Toole, American author (b. 1937) *1973 - Noel Coward, English composer and playwright (b. 1899) * 1973 - Johnny Drake, American football player (b. 1916) * 1973 - Don Messer, Canadian fiddler (b. 1909) * 1973 - George Sisler, American baseball player (b. 1893) *1976 - Josef Albers, German artist (b. 1888) * 1976 - Lin Yutang, Chinese writer (b. 1895) *1983 - Anthony Blunt, British art historian and spy (b. 1907) *1984 - Ahmed Sékou Touré, President of Guinea (b. 1922) *1987 - Eugen Jochum, German conductor (b. 1902) *1990 - Halston, American fashion designer (b. 1932) *1992 - Barbara Frum, Canadian journalist (b. 1937) *1995 - Eazy-E, American rapper (b. 1963) *1996 - Edmund Muskie, American politician (b. 1914) * 1996 - David Packard, American engineer and businessman (b. 1912) *1997 - Marshall Applewhite, American cult leader (b. 1931) *2000 - Alex Comfort, American author (b. 1920) *2002 - Randy Castillo, American drummer (Ozzy Osbourne, Mötley Crüe) (b. 1950) *2003 - Daniel Patrick Moynihan, U.S. Senator (b. 1927) *2004 - Jan Berry, American musician (Jan and Dean) (b. 1941) * 2004 - Jan Sterling, American actress (b. 1921) *2005 - James Callaghan, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (b. 1912) * 2005 - Paul Hester, Australian drummer (Split Enz and Crowded House) (b. 1959) * 2005 - Marius Russo, American baseball player (b. 1914) *2006 - Anil Biswas, Indian politician (b. 1944) * 2006 - Paul Dana, American race car driver (b. 1975) * 2006 - Nikki Sudden, British singer/songwriter (b. 1956) Holidays and observances * Independence Day - Bangladesh * Zoroastrianism - Prophet Zoroaster's Birthday. * Prince Kuhio Day in Hawaii Liturgical feasts Catholic: *Saint Emmanuel (died 304) *Saint Ludger *Saint Larissa *Eastern (Byzantine) Catholic Church: Synaxis of the Archangel Gabriel *Orthodox Christian liturgical calendar - Synaxis of St. Gabriel the Archangel External links * BBC: On This Day * * On This Day in Canada ---- Category:March